Top of the class at The Seafood Restaurant, Padstow

Rick Stein has become the face of British fish and seafood over the past ten years or so. He seems to be continuously on our TVs, seeking out producers of all kinds and showing his own compelling (to me anyway) cuisine, stressing simplicity, quality and attention to detail over elaborate and bizarre combinations. Actually, he’s been in the fish game a very long time – the building housing the restaurant was originally bought by Stein in 1972 as a nightclub (which failed) and The Seafood Restaurant opened its doors in 1975. His big break came when Keith Floyd, making his Floyd On Fish series for BBC TV, suggested to his producer that they go and see when Stein was doing. The producer agreed, and the rest is history.

As seafood geek I have obviously wanted to visit his own Seafood Restaurant for some time. The current downturn means that the Steins (Rick and his ex-wife Jill who now actually runs the restaurant) are offering some excellent bargain deals. We took advantage of a two-night break for £190 per person, including meals in the St Petrocs Bistro (more next time) and the Seafood Restaurant itself. The Almora room was very nice indeed, funky bathroom with TV, modern and light.

After a warm-up pint at the Old Customs House pub along the quay, we were shown to our table in the busy and buzzing Saturday night atmosphere. Even though this was the first weekend after New Year, the place was almost full. The menu is (of course) dominated by all manner of fish and seafood, though there is a veggie starter (pumpkin open ravioli) and a meat main (char-grilled cotes de boeuf). What a tremendously difficult choice… The starters were particularly hard to choose between – oysters from various places including native flats from Clarinbridge in Ireland, fruits-de-mer platters, proper provencal fish soup with rouille, sashimi of sea bass, scallop, brill and salmon, mussels, lobster and fennel risotto… Aaargh!

In the end I was toying with hot shellfish with parsley, chilli, olive oil, garlic and lemon juice but plumped in the end for Cornish crab with wakame salad and wasabi mayonnaise. The crab meat was delicious and delicate, the wakame (green seaweed) salad a perfect foil and the wasabi mayo had a nice spiciness about it. My companions were all well pleased with their sashimi, ragout of turbot and scallops and grilled scallops with pumpkin seeds, Serrano chilli and coriander sauce. A bottle of one of the extensive wine list’s more outlandish options, a Brazilian Ovaja Negra pinot grigio-riesling washed it all down very well – the wine was very crisp, just the job.

The main course choice was somewhat easier, even though there were many tempting options including whole dover sole (a classic), monkfish vindaloo, Singapore chilli crab and a full fruits-de-mer platter (one of which arrived at the next table looking amazing, uncompromising and fully monster-of-the-deep laden). Padstow lobster had my name on it – it’s not something one sees very often, and I had to try it here. I went for the grilled with fines herbes option as opposed to boiled with salad leaves and mayo, and it was sensational. Beautifully buttery, herby, tasty, cooked to perfection, with some work to do to get the meat from the claws and legs but totally manageable. Fantastic. A little dish of buttered and peppery neeps (swede or turnip?) was a nice accompanying touch.

Again my companions were well pleased – the troncon of turbot (does anything else over come in troncons??) with hollandaise sauce was particularly good, and the two plates of brill with pancetta and beurre noisette appeared to have been fashioned to look identical – an example of the attention to detail visible here. Bottles of Allende Blanco 2005 white rioja went very will with all this butter and richness – the wine definitely oaky and yet with a good edge, not something I would have at home but a splendid treat.

After all that the desserts might have been something of a come-down, but the Stein simplicity and attention to detail saw us through to the end. My blackberry and quince cobbler (cooked to order) with clotted cream ice cream was delicious, piping hot from the oven. Very strong coffees brought the evening to a close. The Seafood Restaurant seems to be a real beacon for British seafood well cooked and exquisitely served – a must for any serious seafood enthusiast or indeed anyone who likes their fish. The Seafood Restaurant, Riverside, Padstow, Cornwall, Reservations: 01841 532700, www.rickstein.com.